As Lust Goes, Redemption
by n0156d
Summary: He quickly settled himself but she had seen it, and as their eyes met once more, there may have been a small hint of understanding in the look that they shared. Neville/OC. Fic starts the September after Voldy's defeat. Will probably be rated M soon.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I am not JKR and do not own anything with regards to the HP universe. All I own are my original thoughts and ideas.

**AS LUST GOES, REDEMPTION**

**Chapter 1 – New Slytherin**

It was September 3rd and a new year at Hogwarts was finally set to begin. Neville rolled off his bed and awkwardly got to his feet, rubbing his eyes in response to the artificial light that was streaming in through his window. Of course, being in the dungeon meant that no real light could get in, and for this reason Neville hated his designated sleeping quarters.

Part of the teacher's wing at Hogwarts had been destroyed in May during the final battle with Voldemort, and had yet to be fixed. As a result, a few of the teachers were moved to a temporary wing on a hallway that led down into the dungeons. Neville was given a room right at the end of the hallway, and unfortunately for him it was located pretty much in the dungeons, really giving Neville the creeps.

As Neville pulled on his jeans and a black jumper, he started to think of about the upcoming day and his new duties. The school had opened for a brief period in June and July to allow O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. students to complete their years, but this would be the first time the school would be open as it was before to all students since the fall of Voldemort.

A lot had happened since that fateful day, and Neville preferred not to think about most of it. In fact, his memories of certain days were still blurry as they had proven to be extremely emotional and still felt rather surreal. These included the days of Fred, Tonks and Lupins' respective funerals, as well as the day he had received his Order of Merlin award. There were days of celebration and joy, but these were heavily outweighed by the countless days of sorrow. The war had taken a toll on everyone.

In June and July, Neville completed his N.E.W.T. examinations along with most of his year. Despite all the anguish of the preceding months, Neville returned eagerly, hoping that a return to studies would offer him some peace of mind. And it did, as Neville, for the first time ever, found studying to be a welcome distraction. With Hermione cramming alongside him (Hermione managed an Outstanding on most of her N.E.W.T.s despite missing the whole year), Neville found himself surprisingly adept when it came time for the exams. Despite a fractured year of studies, he achieved an 'O' in Defense, Herbology and Transfiguration, an 'E' in Charms, Astronomy and _, and an 'A' in History. Potions, however, was completely neglected.

His performance in Herbology was especially impressive, earning Neville high praise and an offer for a position at Hogwarts as an assistant to Professor Sprout while reparations were still being made to the castle. The position included liaison duties for the staff of the semi-orphanage that had been set up for 30 or more orphans that would be residing at Hogwarts until other arrangements could be found.

Neville gratefully accepted the offer, despite his Gran's wishes. She was still urging Neville to become an auror, like his parents were, especially after his evolution during the war. She had been quite disappointed when Neville had abandoned his Potions N.E.W.T. over the summer.

Neville quickened his stride as he rounded the corner towards Headmistress McGonogall's office. He had been told to meet her there so they could discuss the Sorting of the new first-years, which wouldn't be taking place in front of the students this year. The Headmistress wanted to downplay the importance and significance of House rivalries this year, especially on account of the stigma that had attached itself to Slytherin over the past few years. She didn't dare go as far as discuss abolishing the Houses completely, as tradition was still an extremely important aspect of Hogwarts history as well as wizarding culture in general.

"Enter, Longbottom," said the Headmistress sharply before Neville could even knock on her door.

"Good morning, professor," said Neville.

McGonogall responded in kind with a wry smile. "As you know the first-years should be along in a couple hours, as we felt it was necessary to bring the students as early in the day as possible this year. I would like to conduct the Sorting in a separate room from the Great Hall, so I'll need you to be present to help with the proceedings and to verify the legitimacy of the Sorting."

Neville nodded, but he thought he knew of another reason that she wanted him. The truth was that his name had become a bit of a buzzword since the death of Voldemort, and Neville had become a bit of a celebrity. He wasn't charming or sociable or popular enough to call for as much attention as the likes of Harry or the Weasleys, which Neville was glad for, but his name still had a power to awe. Neville figured a collection of first-years would find it a thrill, even if he knew otherwise, to meet him on their first day. Maybe it would lay to rest some of their anxieties, or even that of their parents, to know that Neville would be at Hogwarts, a sort of added security after the events of the past year.

"As usual, Hagrid will lead the kids through the underground entrance and I will take them to the Potions classroom. There you will lead each student to the Sorting Hat and I will observe and record the results. You don't have to say anything. Afterwards, I'll lead them into the Great Hall and you'll take your seat amongst the students—"

"At the Slytherin table..."

She nodded. "Yes, I think it is best to establish this precedence right from the start."

"I understand... err, m'am." Neville had to admit that the thought of sitting with Slytherins unnerved him, although the past year under Snape and the Carrows had revealed to him that most of them were just like the students of the remaining Houses.

The Headmistress gave Neville a small smile and then continued. "The reconstruction of the West tower and East gate will be commencing this week, so the orphans still need to be relocated. Has a solution been found yet?"

Neville spoke with a bit more confidence this time. "Not yet but I think the Room of Requirement can be used for this purpose. I'm planning on looking into it after the feast to see if it can be made into a suitable place for the kids. I'm fairly confident it can be done, it hasn't let me down so far."

The Headmistress noted something on her parchment and then nodded approvingly. "I'll leave it in your charge. If any of the staff taking caring of the kids has any issues or requests, please let me know." She paused for a second. "I think that seems to be all. Please be at the Potions room by 11:00 a.m., the Hogwarts Express has been bewitched to arrive by then. And one more thing." McGonogall stood up and offered her hand. "Welcome to the staff."

"Thanks, Professor," Neville said uncertainly, shaking her hand.

* * *

><p>Lily was scared and nervous. She hated keeping secrets, partly because it's what she had had to do her whole life. And this new school wasn't going to be any different.<p>

Her whole life she had always been a ghost, no parents or family to speak of. Only recently, though, had she truly become an orphan. Not that that mattered, since she had been raised in a muggle orphanage until the age of 10, by which she had been sent to Durmstrang, her home for the past six years. Now, at the age of 17, Hogwarts was to be her new home for her last year of magical education. After that, who knew where she'd end up. She just hoped she could survive the year.

The past year had been tough for her. She had finally heard from her father, confirming to her the whispers that he was still alive, although he had already been dead in her heart. Despite her animosity, curiosity got the better of her. Throughout the year they corresponded and from him she learned the truths of her mother and her birth. She pestered him for every detail and he reluctantly conceded, describing to her the war he was involved in and the harsh realities behind her existence. Finally, one day in late April, he had sent her a long letter littered with apologies and regrets and what she interpreted as a final goodbye. One week later, Lily heard of the deaths of both of her parents, plunging her into despair just when she had welcomed the possibility of having someone there for her. Furthermore, when Durmstrang got news of Voldemort`s fall, Lily was expelled without another thought due to the perceived allegiances of her parents.

It was Professor Sinistra that had arranged for her to finish her education at Hogwarts, and Lily was extremely thankful for that. She made a note to herself to thank her in person. As much as she wanted to forget her parents ever existed, she was still curious to see where they had gone to school, lived, and died.

Lily looked around the compartment on the Hogwarts Express that she was in. There were a couple first-year girls across from her, but otherwise it was empty. One of them was falling asleep, which wasn't surprising since the train had departed at 7:00 a.m. that morning instead of what she understood to be the usual 11:00 a.m. There was a notice about avoiding travel during the evening issued by the Ministry Aurors.

Lily stretched her arms upwards as looked to make sure her trunk was still beside her. When she travelled she was always paranoid about losing her baggage, for she didn't know what she would do if she ever lost her clothes. It was the one thing she always indulged in, where all her Durmstrang-allotted allowance would go to. Of course, Durmstrang was no more, and she didn't anticipate receiving any sort of allowance from Hogwarts, despite her orphan background.

She looked at the window and it was dark enough to see her reflection, so she examined herself. She was wearing a short black skirt with a rather form-fitting green and black blouse, accompanied by a green and burgundy tie in the fashion of Durmstrang students. She had adjusted the skirt to make it shorter, going to the mid-thigh instead of the knees, using the warmer weather in London as justification. Her legs were clad with black stockings that stretched up past her knees, and the ensemble was complete with little black boots. With a satisfied glance, she turned away from the window and closed her eyes, wondering what exactly the year had in store for her.

An announcement rang through the train, alerting the students to put on their robes as arrival to Hogwarts would be in five minutes. Following the lead of the first-years in front of her, Lily slid the robe over her shoulders, letting it fall just short of her ankles. She looked in the window at her reflection in disgust. Robes really limited her choice of fashion, and thus she hated them. It was one of the reasons she liked to dress how she did under the robes; nobody would see it anyways, she figured, so she might as well indulge in the styles she had become accustomed to in Siberia.

As the train came to a stop, Lily followed the swarm of students out, making sure to follow the smallest of students as she had been advised to.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over here!" The bellowing voice of the largest man she had ever seen rang out over the grounds. Lily walked over to him, feeling out of place with all the other youngsters. There were a few others who were older, a group of four students who seemed to be 13-15 years of age, but they all seemed to be as uncomfortable as she felt.

The group trailed the monstrous man, and Lily cursed herself for her heeled boots as she manoeuvred herself by the muddy shores and into a rickety old boat. The boat ride was quite pleasant, and when she first got sight of the castle she was as awed as any of the first-years. She didn't even care that her hair was becoming dishevelled by the wind.

The castle itself was a little unnerving, especially as they walked along the dungeons. A couple of the younger kids had tears in their eyes, and Lily was relieved when they finally made it to what Hagrid (the monster of a man) called the Potions room. Inside, a haughty old lady and a young man about her age carrying a disgusting hat were waiting.

"Please, take a seat. I am Headmistress McGonogall and first and foremost I would like to welcome you to Hogwarts. For all of you it is your first year of magical education at this institution and I hope you can find within these walls a place to learn and feel at home amongst everybody. Most of you are first-years, but we have five others attending for the first time this year. We usually don't accept this, but due to the circumstances of the past year, the next few years will be an exception as we attempt to provide an education for all those that may have been caught up in the war in previous years." The Headmistress glanced at the students and Lily automatically shivered. She noted to herself not to get on the bad side of this one.

"The first event of the year is the Sorting of new students. I will ask you all to put on the hat that Neville Longbottom here is holding and whatever House the hat chooses will be your new House." There was a small murmur amongst the kids but it was quickly silenced by a McGonogall glare.

'So this is him,' Lily thought to herself, observing the war hero carefully. He seemed younger than the pictures she had seen of him, but then again those pictures were taken after the deciding days of what must have been a gruelling war. His eyes were oddly infectious, although unspectacular, and his hair a light brown colour that she found quite pleasing. He was wearing jeans and a black jumper, which disappointed her a little. Surely a war hero should take a little more care in dressing himself. But then again, she told herself, that's how most British people seemed to be.

As McGonogall continued talking about rules or some other tedious subject, Lily found herself in deep thought, sparing glances at Longbottom every now and then. Could he have been the one to kill her parents? She didn't particularly feel any malevolent feelings towards him if indeed he was the one, but there was a little dam in her heart that wanted to flow free, and perhaps avenging her parents would do the trick. Maybe that was the reason she was so intrigued to come to Hogwarts and learn more of her parents. She shook her head and glanced up at Neville, only to see that his features had changed to that resembling horror. He quickly settled himself but she had seen it, and as their eyes met once more, there might have been a small hint of understanding in the look that they shared.

* * *

><p>It was obvious that Neville was a gentle person at heart, despite the war, and this intrigued Lily deeply. It was his eyes that seemed to smile to the young children as he tried to help them feel comfort within the dark walls of the Potions classroom. After an extremely short introduction of himself, Neville explained to the children the Houses of Hogwarts and how they would fit into their lives. Then it was time for the Sorting.<p>

Many of the young kids were nervous, and Lily admitted to herself that she was too. According to the House guidelines laid out by Neville, she thought Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw might be the best Houses for her. However, she had a sneaking suspicion that the Hat was determined to place her in Slytherin where her parents had both been.

Lily watched carefully as the first kid stepped up to the stool and nervously took a seat. Neville placed the Hat on the boy's head and gave him a reassuring smile. After about 10 seconds the hat boomed "Slytherin!"

The boy's face looked stricken with horror and only relaxed a little when Neville leaned over and whispered something to him, helping him away from the stool to line up beside Hagrid. He still looked shaken though, and Lily found herself feeling more and more hesitant about joining Slytherin.

Once all the first-years had been sorted (14 Slytherins, 10 Hufflepuffs, 8 Ravenclaws and 6 Gryffindors), Lily found that it was her turn. She sat down, sparing a glance at Neville where she found no such reassuring smile for herself. Feeling a little down she let the Sorting Hat be placed on her head and waited.

Lily listened quietly to the Hat, closing her eyes instinctively. _So, another Slytherin it seems. Your blood lines definitely scream Slytherin and I think your sharp mind is ideal. Still, there is a softness there that makes me think you'd be happier in Hufflepuff. You're 17, I think you're old enough to make your own decision._

_I don't know_, she responded.

_Of course you know! There shouldn't be any doubt for you. Now tell me, which House would you like me to place you in?_

Lily bit her lip, trying to prevent herself from thinking it. Her mind ran free though, and she found that she had no control as the thought streamed out of her. _Put me in Slytherin._

"Slytherin!" boomed the Hat, and she quickly flung her eyes open. She grabbed Neville's hand, allowing him to help her up as he took the Hat off of her. She noticed that his face looked even graver, which only increased her suspicions. Lily made her way towards the small cluster of first-year Slytherins, giving them a small smile. Most of them still looked extremely nervous, but it seemed like some of them visibly relaxed as she joined their ranks.

The remainder of the Sorting passed by with the two third-year students both going to Ravenclaw and the fourth and fifth year students each going to Slytherin. Once everything was completed, Lily streamed out of the Potions room with all the students, making sure to be near the front as Neville was hanging back and she wanted to be away from those eyes at the moment. She didn't know what it was exactly, but there was something accusing in those eyes whenever they made eye contact and it made her feel crestfallen.

Quickening her stride to keep up with Hagrid and the Headmistress, Lily tried to shake certain thoughts out of her head. Namely, thoughts about the potential relationship between Neville and her parents. They were enemies, that was for sure, and there was probably more to it than just that.

She spared a glance behind her at the first-years that were struggling to keep up with the two teachers. Some of the children were jogging to keep up, while others had fallen back to walk more slowly with Neville. And he had that look in his eyes again, that look of gentleness and serenity. Lily found herself jealous and a small amount of the despair that she had felt before returned. That's the look she had dreamed about receiving from her parents, which she allowed herself to believe might have been possible just a few short months ago. Now, she knew it would never happen. And it came back to Neville, because it might have been him that had sealed her parents' fates. He was one of the Heroes of Hogwarts after all.

Lily made a promise to herself that she would definitely need to have some questions answered. The first thing that meant was having a little talk with Neville Longbottom.

**A/N : Please let me know what you think and if I should continue. I'm thinking steamy romance with dark elements. Will be rated 'M' later. Reviews would be most welcome.**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I am not JKR and do not own anything with regards to the HP universe. All I own are my original thoughts and ideas.

**AS LUST GOES, REDEMPTION**

**Chapter 2 –**

Lily found her chance right away. For whatever reason, Neville, the Hero of Hogwarts, as Gryffindor as any Gryffindor could be, had sat at the edge of _the Slytherin_ table. She ignored the whispering voices and glances that she was receiving (although the majority were probably directed at Neville himself) and slid over a couple seats to the right from where she had originally sat down, positioning herself directly across from the nervous young man.

He certainly looked nervous right now, obviously not used to having such intense scrutiny directed his way by an entire Great Hall. But all the same, his expression was of resilience and even a little pride. He sat up straight, trying his best to make it appear that sitting with the Slytherins was a respectable thing. And overall, Lily thought, he was doing a good job.

When Neville first entered the Great Hall at the end of the queue of first-years, most of the student population erupted in a loud cheer, with those at the Gryffindor table standing up and hooting and hollering as loud as their lungs would allow them to. A red-faced Neville tried his best to downplay everything, and the cheers finally faded as he took his controversial seat. That didn't stop the loud whispers though, until the Headmistress finally decided to give the students a chilling glare that Lily thought could silence even the Bloody Baron.

The whole Slytherin table had a kind of electricity running through it. It was definitely a big shock when Neville of all people had manoeuvred himself onto their table, trying to look as subtle as possible, even though that was impossible with hundreds of eyes locked on him. But the message was sent, and most of the students understood it; at least the older ones.

Headmistress McGonogall was talking, but really, Lily had no ears for that at the moment, as it seemed was the case for most of the students. Lily glared from across the table at the two girls who had squeezed themselves between a first-year kid and Neville, leaving everyone tightly locked together, threatening to push Neville off the edge of the table. The black-haired girl closest to him looked a nervous wreck, not knowing what to do with such close proximity to the legendary hero.

Lily rolled her eyes as that girl's friend, a short blonde who looked a little more excited and in control of herself, budged the black-haired girl so that her arm, hip and leg were now flush up against Neville. Lily could swear the girl almost fainted as Neville squirmed uncomfortably, his eyes trained on a blemish on the table. For some reason Lily felt her blood start to boil as she continued to glare at the girls across from her. But they paid her no attention as their thoughts were otherwise preoccupied by their current escapades with a war hero.

Lily tried to catch Neville's eyes. Maybe she could use this to her advantage, she thought to herself. But he wouldn't look up from the table. Whatever he saw there, Lily realized he wasn't going to peel his eyes away from it anytime soon. Sliding forward on her bench a little, Lily reached out with her legs, trying to get his attention. Her boots were pointed so they would do the job, now all she had to do was find his legs.

Lily kicked and made contact with something, eliciting a scowl and glare from the blonde girl. 'Oops! Wrong one!' she thought to herself, glaring back. She shifted to the right and made another swipe, making contact once again. This time it was the black-haired girl who reacted. She didn't make a sound, but instead tears started to form in her eyes and her body jerked slightly, giving her an excuse to pulse slightly against Neville and press herself against him more firmly.

Lily growled under her breathe, and then hissed as a sharp pain was felt on her shin. She looked up to see the blonde girl smirking victoriously, her eyes sparkling with glee. This though, had caught Neville's attention as he looked up and finally made eye contact with Lily.

Lily ignored the blonde girl for now and gave Neville a significant look, urging him not to look away. He looked at her confusedly, still looking uncomfortable due to the close proximity of the girl to his right. Lily shifted herself to the left, leaving a gap on the bench to her right. Then, with her eyes, she indicated the empty seat, hoping he would understand.

His eyes instantly lit up, making Lily smile in return. He seemed to be hesitant for a while, looking about the room and pondering how he would make his move. Then, 'CRASH!' A violent sound rose from the staff table, and then a series of apologies from the large form of Hagrid. Most of the staff and older kids were chuckling. It seemed this was a rather common occurrence in the Great Hall of Hogwarts.

The next thing she knew, Lily felt a soft jolt on her right knee as Neville Longbottom suddenly appeared at her right, looking rather pleased with himself having used the distraction so effectively. 'Victory!' Lily thought to herself, beaming as she looked across the table at the furious blonde. The other girl was still in a dazed state, with the added effect of tears threatening to roll down her eyes.

"Thanks," mumbled Neville softly, glancing to his left.

"No problem," mouthed Lily silently, quirking her lip in a small smile as she turned towards him slightly, brushing her knee against his.

Suddenly, she was a little more nervous. Sure, talking to him sounded easy enough, but in reality the topics she wanted to broach were a little sensitive. 'Hey, Neville! Can you tell me about my parents? Even though they might have done some horrible things and you must have hated them and you probably had a hand in killing them and and and...' Lily shook her head, clearing the thought out of her mind. 'No, that wouldn't do!'

Lily spared a glance at Neville again. He was a rather imposing man, she realized. In general, the wizarding population relied on magic way too much to ever build up any physical strength. But Neville, she realized, was a little different. His hands were big and slightly calloused, his arms toned and powerful. The black jumper he was wearing hid the definition of his body, but Lily could imagine that his chest was just as powerful and probably quite attractive. She looked down, trying to force the thoughts out.

'What am I thinking?' she thought to herself.

He was in Herbology, that was it. That was what he said in the Potions dungeon, that he would be an assistant to the Herbology professor here at Hogwarts. That made more sense, Lily thought to herself. Herbology was a field where physical activity was often required, where a witch or wizard had to use brute strength rather than magic at times.

Wrestling certain plants could be quite a hassle, she remembered from her time at Durmstrang. Those plants were manageable as long as magic wasn't used, but if a foolish student decided to rely on his or her wand, the plant would feel threatened and defend itself in ways that could potentially prove fatal. On that line of thought Lily remembered her herbology professor at Durmstrang and just how imposing he was physically. Things started to make a little more sense for Lily.

Lily, in general, hated wizard elitists. She was raised in a muggle orphanage and thus had a healthy respect for the muggle ways. Depending on a wand too much was considered bad form in Durmstrang, and most of the teachers always made sure to teach students the pros and cons of such an attitude. Hogwarts, it seemed to Lily, was a little different. The bewitched train and platform 9 ¾ and invisible-horse-drawn carriages and bewitched ceiling all indicated to her that the British Isles were all about using magic to help in one's life to the full extent possible.

Neville, seemed a little different, and it made her heart beat just that tiny bit faster.

* * *

><p>"Uh, you can start eating," Neville said, eyeing the new Slytherin witch carefully. The opening feast that Hogwarts was so famous for had been announced and had appeared on the vast tables a minute ago but Lily hadn't reacted yet, seemingly deep in thought.<p>

Lily perked up, giving Neville a sheepish smile. Then her eyes instantly lit up as she saw the tables littered with everything she could have dreamed of. "Wow!" she exclaimed, her smile growing brighter as she reached for her pumpkin juice and took an experimental taste.

Neville smiled back, amused at her enthusiasm at seeing her first Hogwarts feast. In this regard, she was just like any other first-year student. Part of Neville's smile also was due to the atmosphere and general giddiness of all the students gathered that afternoon. It had been well over a year since the school had seemed so alive, and it being only months removed from the tragic battle here in May, Neville was ecstatic to see everything resume its normal behaviour.

Neville looked around his table. He had almost forgotten that he was seated with Slytherins. The truth was they really were like any other bunch of students, and Neville agreed with McGonogall's motives concerning removing the stigma that had become all too associated with the House.

There were eyes everywhere glancing at him inquisitively, so Neville ducked his head slightly and resumed his meal. The two girls across from him were staring again, one shooting death rays at Lily every now and then, the other just picking at her food with watery eyes that made Neville almost feel bad for her. He shivered and concentrated on his chicken, savouring the home cooking of the hundreds of Hogwarts house-elves.

"So, Neville," Lily began tentatively. Neville looked to his left, almost startled at how close she was. Her eyes were big and very dark; with a tinge of violet that he wasn't sure was there at times. "I've heard of you, even at Durmstrang, you know." She had a slight accent that Neville thought was a little familiar to that of Viktor Krum, although her voice had a melodious and otherwise pleasant tone to it.

"So you were at Durmstrang before?"

Lily nodded. "Yeah."

"We've never had new students that weren't firsties here, not in my time at least," Neville said enquiringly. "Does this mean you were affected by the war?"

"You could say that," Lily spoke slowly. "Err, it's complicated..."

"You don't have to say anything," Neville interrupted.

"No! I mean, I want to, since I have a lot of questions. But you probably get tons of questions thrown at you all the time, so I don't want to..." she trailed off, leaving Neville feeling a little guilty.

"What do you want to know?" Neville asked, worrying a little as he didn't feel like living through any of battle at the moment, and that's what girls usually like to ask him about first.

Lily seemed to gain a little confidence as her eyes made a resolution and clasped onto those of Neville. "So, you were like an auror or something? I mean, I don't really know much about you, but did you know the enemy like really well, since you were fighting against them and all?"

Neville paused for a second to ponder the question, somewhat confused as to the direction that Lily wanted to take the conversation. "No, I was just a student last year. I didn't really know anything about what was going on except for when I was involved with Harry, but last year Harry wasn't at school and it was under... a different regime... than right now, so things were pretty bad." He paused again, wondering what to tell her.

"You mean you were being schooled under Voldemort?" she asked quietly so nobody could overhear.

"He wasn't present, but it was his administration. The Carrows were the worst, they were teachers there, so I guess by the end of the year I knew them pretty well." He almost chuckled a little, but was silenced by Lily's serious gaze.

"And the Headmaster," he continued, "was Snape, who we thought was with the enemy right to the very end, and maybe he was, but it seems like he was on our side when it mattered. Harry is defending him at every opportunity, so it seems to be true. And when I think about it, Snape could have been a lot worse to us this past year, though he was pretty nasty."

This last bit of information seemed to be what Lily was looking for as her forehead scrunched in deep thought, eyes still locked onto Neville's at every opportunity. Her eyes made Neville feel uncomfortable and he found himself looking away more often than not. This time her eyes softened and she smiled at him.

"Can you tell me about him? Snape I mean?"

"Why?"

"Err..." Lily leaned forward, so close that her forehead almost touched Neville's. The blonde girl across the table was glaring at her again, Neville noticed. "Promise to keep a secret?" she whispered quietly, her lips doing most of the talking.

Neville hated the sound of that. Secrets were usually burdens, and the look of the young woman beside him practically screamed that any secret she had wouldn't be something he would enjoy. He gulped, and nodded, intrigued and maybe even a little sympathetic to whatever plight she had endured that caused her to have to attend Hogwarts this year.

"Well, I'm going to trust you with this Neville." She spoke his name very slowly and sanguinely. "I don't usually tell people stuff, but I think your reputation speaks for itself and...I might need your help. I don't know for sure, but I think Snape might be my father."

Neville's muscles tensed visibly for a second and then released as he backed off a little away from Lily. She looked at him a little uncertainly; afraid of whatever consequences might result, growing a little concerned when a smile broke out across his face.

"Seriously?" he spat out, visibly trying to prevent himself from laughing.

Lily pouted playfully as she looked up at him. "What's so funny?"

"Wait!" Neville said, taking a slow breathe, trying to compose himself. "So you're telling the truth then?"

"Yesssss," Lily hissed softly, her eyes now twinkling as she watched the laugh lines forming and disappearing on his otherwise soft face.

With one final breathe Neville straightened his lips and turned his body so he could face Lily more directly. "This is serious," he said, more to himself than anything.

"What is? And why?"

"I don't know. It just seems like a pretty big deal, that's all."

"You promised you won't tell anyone."

"I won't. But you should probably tell McGonogall at least, or any teacher."

"Why should I? Well Professor Sinistra knows, but I'm not telling the Headmistress anything."

Neville shrugged, his face cracking again before he could compose it. "It's up to you, I guess."

"What is so funny exactly?" Lily asked, a little more loudly, grabbing Neville's attention.

This caused Neville to almost start laughing again. He was usually pretty good at holding in these kinds of outbursts, but the image that was consistently playing out in his mind was a little too much to handle.

"Well," Neville began, drawing out the first word, "it's just that... the image of Snape as a family man... with a wife, and beautiful daughter, and... well it just all seems so surreal." His shoulders weren't shaking anymore and he let the smouldering heat of Lily's eyes force the laughter down. She seemed pretty angry.

When she spoke, however, her voice was soft and gentle, the sharp notes of her accent curving off significantly. "Everyone's entitled to a happy life. Even if he was evil or whatever... he was still..." Lily's eyes had fallen with a sudden sadness that shocked Neville. She was supremely beautiful like this, and the violets of her eyes showed as clear as day.

Neville felt obliged to apologize. After all, if indeed Snape was her father, then she was just another person in the world who had lost a parent all too soon, and it must have hurt just like he hurt when he thought about his parents. However much he tried, the words just couldn't come out. Instead Neville reached down and grabbed her hand softly, giving it a gentle squeeze before letting go.

There was a slight pause as Neville listened to the chattering of the students and the scraping of forks and spoons and plates. Lily was the first to speak.

"You're really sweet, you know," she said quietly, causing Neville to lean his head closer to hear properly.

This was the exact opposite of how Neville felt right now. "No I'm not."

"Yes, you really are." Lily's voice had picked up and she had a familiar gleam in her eyes which indicated confidence. Turning to face Neville, she crossed one leg over the other and smiled. "I want to talk to you later. I want you to tell me everything you know about him. I want you to tell me about the war and Hogwarts and yourself and everything in between. In exchange, I'll tell you about myself and anything you want to know. I know it's not a fair trade-off, and we're not even friends or anything yet and I'm asking so much and I don't even know why I'm saying all this, but please."

Lily looked flustered and Neville felt his will gravitating towards her. Her eyes were needy but still determined and focused, her neckline taut but still elegant and proud. And everything in between: her smooth, pale skin, her moist red lips, her subtle pointed nose and gently arching jaw; well, it was a picture of beauty that Neville couldn't find himself ever refusing.

"We're friends," he exclaimed in a soft but focused whisper. "We might know each other for only a couple hours so far, but I'd like to be able to call you my friend." Neville smiled as Lily's eyes lit up slightly.

"Me too," she smiled back, leaning forward and pressing her leg subtly against his. Her watery eyes blinked shut, and then open again. With another sweet smile she turned her violet pupils away.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Sorry it took so long to come out. Hopefully the next one will come quick. Please review, give me advice, etc. :)**


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I am not JKR and do not own anything with regards to the HP universe. All I own are my original thoughts and ideas.

**As Lust Goes, Redemption**

**Chapter 3**

"Neville!"

Ginny's voice rang out across the Great Hall, causing Neville to stop his progress as he was making his way towards the teacher's tables up front. The Headmistress had just announced for the Prefects to lead the students to their dormitories, so the Great Hall was a mess of students swarming towards their respective residences for the year.

Neville made eye contact with the fiery redhead and smiled as she approached.

"Neville! You weren't even going to say hi?" she said, flashing Neville a bright smile as she finally reached him and punched him on the arm, not as softly as Neville thought she may have intended.

"Err, Ginny, I just saw you yesterday..." Neville chuckled.

"It was actually two days ago!" Ginny stood in front of Neville as he mumbled a half-hearted apology, and then quickly sprang into him with a powerful hug. The girl was quite strong for someone so small, Neville noted to himself, but that was something he already knew.

He hugged her back and then grinned as he spoke. "So, you're excited to be back at Hogwarts then?"

"Yes! After last year, I hadn't realized how much I missed Hogwarts. I suddenly feel like a little kid again." Ginny's face radiated with glowing warmth, confirming her genuine enthusiasm. "But," she began, her expression becoming a frown, "_someone_ doesn't want to sit with us Gryffindors anymore."

"Ginny, I'm not in Gryffindor anymore, I'm not a student anymore" Neville said.

"You'll always be a Gryffindor, you know. Like Harry and Ron and Hermione and..."

"Don't you think maybe Hogwarts would be better if the House that they belonged to wasn't such a big deal?" Neville interrupted. "I mean, even you saw last year that most of the Slytherins were just as scared as us. There's no reason for us to hate them and for them to hate us; all it does is..."

"But they're Slytherins!" It was Ginny's turn to interrupt as she took a step towards Neville and grabbed his elbow, looking a little flustered. "There's a reason they're in Slytherin. Come on! Even you must have noticed how those girls were itching to staple themselves to you. They're sly and cunning and they know that you're a war hero so now they're trying to get at you because of that, and they'll do anything for that because that's how Slytherins are!"

"Take a breath, Gin," Neville said, a smile forming on his lips. "That doesn't necessarily mean that they're evil. Hermione's as cunning as they come and she was the brains behind almost everything for the good side. Imagine if we had someone like Hermione last year to help us with the D.A., we probably could have accomplished so much more."

"Yeah, and probably died in the process," Ginny mumbled.

"We probably should have died last year anyways," Neville replied. "At least the two of us."

By now, the Great Hall was almost empty and all the teachers had vacated. Neville had planned on talking to Professor Sinistra about Lily, but with Ginny interrupting that would have to be done some other time.

There was a little pause, and then Ginny was the first to speak up. "All I'm saying is that you should sit with us."

"It was McGonogall that told me to sit with the Slytherins."

"Huh?" Ginny's face perked up a little at this news.

"She figures that the Slytherins are going to have it pretty tough this year due to everything that happened last year, so she wanted me to set an example right from the start that the Slytherins are still a part of our school and should be treated as such."

"I could care less about them..."

"Well, Gin, I happen to agree with McGonogall. Most of them are just little kids; they don't deserve to be treated like trash."

"Ugh, Neville, you're too soft." Ginny smiled. "I don't think Harry would have done what you did. I think he still hates them too much, and he's as proud of being in Gryffindor as anything else."

"Well Harry's pretty much the embodiment of Gryffindor," Neville laughed. "How is he anyways?"

Ginny's eyes turned a little dark at the subject. "I don't know. He's still not really acting like himself. Like how I remember him to be, I mean. Really moody and..."

"Harry's always been moody," Neville interrupted.

"More so than usual," Ginny continued. "It seems like all he cares about is his auror training and being Kingsley's puppet. Over the summer he stopped coming to the Burrow for a couple days at a time. It seems like he doesn't want to stay with my family anymore. He asked me to leave home and come live with him, but I couldn't leave mum and dad... and George."

"What about now?"

"Now that I'm here he left the Burrow for good. It upset mum pretty bad. She doesn't think it's a good idea for him to be living all by himself in Sirius's old house."

There was a small pause, until Neville spoke. "Harry can take care of himself," he said softly.

"Yeah, against Death Eaters and dark creatures maybe. But he was still having pretty bad nightmares, even if he didn't like to tell me. And what worries me most is that he's training really hard, even though Voldemort is dead now."

Neville shrugged. "Maybe he realizes that he kind of got lucky against Voldemort..."

"He didn't get lucky! He was the Chosen One, it was fate for him to kill Voldemort and he did."

"Ginny... Don't you remember when we were at the Department of Mysteries and Dumbledore arrived?"

"Not really," she responded.

"Well, let me tell you how it was. We were barely hanging on against the Death Eaters. When Dumbledore arrived, they suddenly all got terrified, and it was for good reason. Within seconds, he had them all tied up and the fight was over. These were full grown Death Eaters, Gin, not kids like us. Dumbledore was an extremely powerful wizard then, and it was said that he was the only wizard that Voldemort was terrified of. Now if you imagine that Voldemort was more powerful than Dumbledore, can you really imagine Harry being able to beat him without luck?"

Ginny was quiet as Neville talked. By this point, they had both taken a seat at one of the tables and were talking quietly so the few remaining students couldn't overhear.

"I guess you're right. So, you think Harry is training a lot because he knows that he most likely won't get so lucky the next time he comes up against a dark wizard."

"It makes sense. He's going to be a Ministry auror so he will undoubtedly come up against dark wizards. I wouldn't be worried about if I were you, Ginny." Neville gave Ginny what he hoped was a reassuring smile.

"I have permission to leave on the weekends to visit Harry," Ginny said, with a little more excitement in her voice now. "Do you want to come with me? I kind of want Harry to relax a bit and see some friendly faces outside of the Ministry."

"Sure, Gin. What did you have in mind?"

"We can just go to the Three Broomsticks, get some drinks, try to get Harry to relax."

"Ehh, that place is always crowded on the weekend. Don't you think Harry will be against that? I mean, I also would rather not go there, but especially Harry..."

"Harry's with me, so the girlies won't even dare approach him!" Ginny winked at Neville and gave him a mischievous smile. "You on the other hand..."

"Well, that's exactly why I'd rather not go. The few times I have gone have been a nightmare," Neville said.

Ginny shrugged. "You'd think a guy would enjoy having girls throw themselves at you. I know what I would be doing if I were a guy in your position: Hero of Hogwarts, single, relatively good looking, heir to a powerful wizarding line." Ginny laughed at the incredulous expression on Neville's face. "Fine, how about the Leaky Cauldron? That place is a dump and almost always empty."

Neville's face went red slightly. "Err, I'd rather not. Plus, ever since Hannah started there, it's really picked up."

Ginny smirked as she eyed Neville carefully. "I bet," she winked. "Her charm worked on you, didn't it?" Ginny laughed again, placing a hand playfully on Neville's shoulders. "How are things with her anyways?"

Neville looked embarrassed as he looked up into Ginny's impish face. "We didn't really go out. It was just a couple times."

"She was always eyeing you last year, you know. I think I made her pretty jealous," Ginny laughed again. Neville couldn't help but smile at Ginny when her spirits were so high.

"She's beautiful, and really sweet. But I think we both knew it wouldn't be a permanent thing when we decided to... hook up. "

"She's more than beautiful," Ginny said. "I saw her the other day, and all I can say is: no wonder that place is picking up." Ginny looked downwards at her chest and then back up at Neville. "I have to say I'm kind of jealous. She definitely has the right assets. And when she wore her hair down..."

"Yes, yes, yes, Ginny, we all know how good Hannah looks with her hair down," an exasperated and embarrassed Neville interrupted, trying to think of a way to change the direction of the conversation.

"Oh yeah, you've seen her naked haven't you Nev."

"Numerous times." Neville did his best to hold a straight face, but yielded when Ginny's bright expression broke out in laughter.

It took almost a minute for the pair to settle down, Ginny wiping at tears threatening to trickle down her face as she lounged on the uncomfortable bench lazily.

"How about a muggle place? No one will recognize us there," Neville said.

"Have you ever gone to a muggle nightclub?" asked Ginny.

"No," replied Neville.

"We'll go this weekend then. Harry and I went once and the atmosphere was pretty great. There's nothing like it in wizarding Britain, since everything's so old-fashioned here, but Fleur told me Paris had some pretty awesome wizarding nightclubs." Ginny started bouncing on her seat, suddenly excited again.

"I guess that sounds good. It's been a while since I've had a good drink or two," Neville laughed.

Ginny laughed also as she seemed to remember something. "The last time you got wasted you ended up with Hannah, didn't you?"

Neville grinned and sighed dramatically. "Every time I got drunk this summer I ended up with Hannah." Catching Ginny's eyes, Neville burst out in laughter once more.

By now Neville's ribs were starting to hurt from all the laughing that they had been doing. Neville didn't know what it was about Ginny, but whenever he talked to her, he always left in a good mood, most likely because of all the laughing that seemed to happen.

"But seriously, Neville," Ginny said. "Bring a date with you. I don't want to have to be charged with watching you as you make a fool of yourself in front of all the muggle women." She smirked at him, her eyes still glowing with mischief.

"You didn't say anything about a date. I don't have anyone to take..."

"You're Neville flippin' Longbottom, you can find a date like _that_." Ginny snapped her fingers dramatically, throwing her hair back. "And if you're too shy for that, I'll find someone for you."

Ginny's smile was sly and conspiratorial, making Neville feel slightly nervous. "No, it's okay. I'll manage by myself."

Ginny stood up and pointed at Neville, her finger digging into his chest playfully. "Just remember, no Slytherins! Especially pretty Slytherins that a certain someone saw you flirting with all through the feast!"

* * *

><p>Lily was excited at the prospect of seeing her new living quarters. The rooms in Durmstrang were all rather dark and gloomy and artificial. There were good things said about Hogwarts, but as Lily made her way down towards the dungeon, she began to have doubts.<p>

The cobbled stone floor and faded lighting of Hogwart's dungeons were even more terrifying than those at Durmstrang. Many of the younger first-year students were holding hands, and Lily found herself wanting a hand to hold at that moment. A large, strong hand, with calluses that weren't quite visible but that could be felt easily...

Then shock hit her as she finally entered the common rooms. Every inch of flooring was covered with a luxurious green rug, and even though the walls were the same cobbled stone of the dungeons, there were torches every couple of feet, allowing light to penetrate every corner of the room. It made the walls look rustic and homey, as did the portraits and paintings that stretched out throughout the room. There was one grand portrait hanging above the main fireplace, below which was placed a series of black leather sofas. There were three other fireplaces in the common room, radiating the room in a warm and comfortable glow that Lily found herself falling in love with. There was also a bulletin board area, a study area, and various lounges spread out across the large common room.

A lot of the older Slytherins seemed surprised as well. It seemed like the comfortable hue of the room was a shock to them too. Lily began making her way towards the 7th year dorms, following the directions of the 5th or 6th year prefect whose name she still hadn't caught.

The inner rooms themselves were just as inviting. A series of five 4-poster beds were placed against the far wall, each with their own desk, drawers and trunk. Lily removed her boots, letting her feet slip and slide against the soft rug as she made her way in.

"You!" Lily turned to her right and instantly recognized the two girls that had been sitting across from her during the opening feast. The blonde girl was the one who had spoken up while the black-haired girl stood at her side in solidarity.

Lily smirked and tried to give them a sweet smile. "Err, hi... sorry about... kicking you earlier..."

"You were a real bitch, you know." This time it was the girl with black hair that spoke, her voice sounding surprisingly confident. Lily had expected her to be timid and shy, like she had seen at the Slytherin table, but maybe that was just Neville's effect on her.

"Olivia's had a thing for Neville going back to last year you know... and you decide you can just walk in here and get in the way like that!"

'So Olivia was the name of the black-haired girl,' Lily thought. "Look, I didn't mean to get in the way or anything, but couldn't you tell he was really uncomfortable. You were going to push him right off the table."

"It was our plan!" responded the blonde vehemently.

"Trisha..." whispered Olivia, looking timid again as she tried to calm her friend to no avail.

"I'm trying to teach 'Liv to be more aggressive if she's ever going to get him. If she pushed him off the table, then she would have apologized and helped him up and BAM, a conversation starter. It was the perfect plan and you ruined it!"

Lily almost laughed. "_That_ was your plan?"

Olivia turned red while the blonde called Trisha continued to stand firm. The sound of another girl laughing caused Lily to turn around. She was a small girl with short black hair, but her voice was loud and carried throughout the room.

"Their plans are always like that, and they never work! You should have seen them trying to get Draco's attention a couple years back. The things they went through, and he barely even looked at them!"

"Hey!" responded Trisha. "I got a kiss out of Draco, didn't I?" This time it was her turn to go red.

The small girl laughed again, rolling her eyes. "Sure, the imaginary kiss. I'm Rosie by the way," said the shorter girl, extending her hand to Lily.

Lily responded by introducing herself and shaking the hands of all three girls, finding herself comfortable enough to do so, despite Trisha's continuing hostility. Olivia seemed like a sweet enough girl, just a little shy and unspectacular. Lily sympathized with her as a girl like her would probably have to go to extremes to catch the attention of someone who had Neville's level of fame.

Trisha was more of a go-getter and Lily didn't mind a little hostility with her. She actually seemed rather amiable and Lily could tell that Trisha wasn't a bad person at heart, only sticking up for her friend who had a little difficulty doing so.

Rosie was more mysterious to Lily. She seemed friendly enough but her features and expressions didn't give her away quite as much as the other girls.

"You were actually doing quite well with Neville, Lily," said Rosie, smiling slyly. This time it was Olivia's turn to glare while Trisha seemed more intent on hearing any details.

Lily found herself getting hotter and she knew her face had gone red. "We were just talking, you know..."

"I don't know, you seemed pretty cozy at the end," said Rosie with a smirk.

An embarrassed Lily looked away from Rosie's amused expression, only to see Trisha had approached her and grabbed her arm. "Come on," began the blonde, "you have to at least tell us the details." Trisha dragged Lily to her bed and hung off her back. "I need details!"

Even Olivia seemed interested now, while Rosie had gone to start unpacking her stuff. Lily took a cue from the smaller girl, jumping out of the grasp of a pouting Trisha.

"I have to start unpacking," she said, with an almost apologetic smile.

Trisha huffed and then smiled back. "Fine, but we're getting details later, like it or not!"

Lily smiled to herself as she made her way towards her trunk, which was located on the bed between that of Rosie and Trisha. 'So far so good,' Lily thought to herself, her spirit soaring. Lily had taken a liking to the girls very quickly, and it seemed like they returned the favour. Even Lily was surprised at herself at how well things had gone in her first couple of hours at Hogwarts.

* * *

><p>Her first dinner at Hogwarts didn't go as smoothly as Lily would have liked. She had taken care in getting dressed for it once Trisha and friends had alerted her that they didn't wear their robes all the time. Olivia had told her that wearing the Hogwarts robes was only mandatory during the opening and closing feasts and during classes. All other times they were free to wear whatever they pleased, although most Slytherins stuck to robes as that was the 'pureblood' thing to do.<p>

Therefore, Lily had chosen an outfit of her own choosing, despite the teasing (and glare) that she received about trying to impress Neville. She had taken a while to get dressed, but she didn't know if she was trying to impress Neville exactly or what. Maybe a little.

Lily had chosen the short black skirt again to go with high black stockings and her small black boots. The top was a more difficult decision, and she settled on a thin red sweater that clung to her body and that extended down almost to the end of her skirt. Her neck and collar bone were slightly exposed as the sweater hung loosely about her shoulders. The arms of the sweater were pulled up to her elbows, and as Lily smiled to herself in the mirror, she found herself satisfied with the results.

The only problem was that Neville wasn't there! Lily just sipped her soup quietly, a little surprised at how upset she was. It wasn't until halfway through a boring and quiet dinner that she spotted him seated amongst the Gryffindors at the opposite side of the room. He was laughing quite animatedly with a slender red-haired girl who she recognized must be Ginny Weasley.

Neville definitely looked more at home with them, and this sentiment left Lily feeling rather down. He hadn't seemed comfortable at the Slytherin table during lunch, and Lily didn't anticipate seeing him there again for the rest of the year.

As she continued to sip her soup unenthusiastically, her eyes met those of Neville and he seemed to blush slightly. Lily smiled at him, but it subsided as she noticed the scowl and glare from the girl to his left. Ginny wrapped Neville's left arm in both of hers and pulled him close, whispering something to him that made him go even redder.

Lily looked away, not wanting to seem like she was too interested in whatever was being said over there. Sighing, she put down her spoon and made her way towards the exit, forcing herself to not look at the Gryffindor table for one last time. It was extremely difficult and her eyes flashed towards the group for a split-second. Ginny seemed more content as she continued to hang off of Neville, who seemed comfortable but a little anxious.

Lily marched out of the doorway and left towards the dungeons. She cursed herself for being so upset at what was essentially nothing. True, she had been looking forward to talking to Neville again tonight, and true, it did hurt her to see that Ginny girl give her such a reproachful look, but it still shouldn't have made her so upset. Lily stopped for a second to take a deep breathe and compose herself.

"Lily."

She turned around so fast that she almost tripped on the cobblestone. "Neville," she breathed, more than slightly surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"We were supposed to talk, right? I figured now would be as good a time as any. Do you want to go for a walk while the light is still out?" Neville smiled, making Lily's heart jump for a second as she stood there and urged herself to respond.

She nodded, and then almost laughed at her awkwardness as she made her way towards Neville. Neville smiled again, causing Lily to flash him her best smile as she finally got her brain to start working again. "Sure, Neville. I'd love to."

They stood awkwardly for a second, and Lily almost had jumped to hug him when Neville turned towards the castle entrance and started walking. Lily walked quickly to catch up, almost laughing again at her ineptitude. Neville seemed more nervous now and Lily cursed herself for making the poor guy feel so awkward around her.

Lily was not usually an awkward person. She was usually able to control her emotions and reactions well, to the point that she often felt a little underwhelmed during social or romantic moments. Today seemed a little different than usual.

A couple minutes passed in companionable silence as they strolled down the path outside of Hogwarts. As they passed the greenhouses, Lily finally spoke up. "So, how come you love Herbology so much? I've always found it rather dull..."

Neville looked up, frowning for a split second and then relaxing as he caught the playful glint in Lily's eyes. "Working with plants has always been an outlet for me, ever since I was young. You see, my magic developed really slowly and during my first few years here I was useless at pretty much everything that required a wand. Herbology was one of the few courses that didn't depend on careful wandwork, so I spent a lot of time in the dirt here since it was the only course I actually liked. Over time, I fell in love with the intricacies of the plants, the unique feel and heartbeat of each one. My professor always told me that with enough practice you could learn how to talk to the plants with your fingers, and once I got that feeling, I was hooked."

Lily smiled; awed at how serene he looked when he was discussing this topic. She was only half-joking when she said she found Herbology dull. It was quite a tedious subject for her, but she recognized the importance of it, especially in Potions where the two fields were most closely linked. "You must be pretty good at Potions then, Neville."

Neville's face fell, making Lily giggle at his expression. "Err... me and Potions never really got along you see..."

Lily smiled and put a comforting hand on Neville's elbow, letting her fingers linger there for a second before pulling back. "I love potions. I'd say it's my favourite subject, since it's maybe the most artistic of courses offered."

"Artistic? How so? I've always found Potions to be just a set of instructions that would never work out, even if you followed every step perfectly. But then again, I could never really concentrate in that class..."

"It's like what you were talking about with Herbology. Once you get a certain feel for Potions, it's like you can communicate with it and bend it to your mind's will. For example, the instructions might say to stir it clockwise 12 times, but each and every potion is unique. Sometimes a potion only needs to be stirred once or twice, sometimes it needs to be stirred for an hour."

"But how can you tell?"

Lily shrugged. "Practice, I guess. The first time you do a certain potion, you might find that it's a little too thick if you stir it 12 times. So next time, try only 10 times, and it ends up a little thinner and more ideal. Then next time, you improve on that, then improve on it again, over and over. Sometimes it won't improve but actually get worse, for absolutely no reason. Some really temperamental potions don't have a single way to do it, so you have to kind of feel the potion and react to it as you're making it. It's like an art. That's why I love it so much."

Neville shook his head. "All I know is I'm absolutely bollocks at it. Didn't help that I was terrified of my professor..." Neville trailed off, looking a little amused as he smirked.

"My dad, right?" Lily responded, smirking back.

"How did you know?" Neville replied, slightly taken aback by Lily's correct guess.

Lily smiled at Neville softly. "He _did_ tell me a couple of things. So how was he as a teacher? He must have been amazing at Potions, right?"

Neville paused for a second, not knowing how exactly he wanted to answer the question. "Well, I guess he must have been great at Potions, considering he taught it. He was the Head of Slytherin, so we Gryffindors, we kind of hated him."

Neville paused again, observing Lily's curious violet eyes. By now they had stopped near the Great Lake, standing under a large, bushy tree so that the castle was blocked from their vision. Lily smiled again, urging Neville to continue.

"He was a bit of an arse to us, actually." Neville smirked again, then continued. "Especially to Gryffindors, and especially to Harry, even though he liked to pick on me since I was pretty bad at Potions. I guess he was upset that I made such a mess in his room every class," Neville laughed.

Lily's eyes brightened, matching those of a laughing Neville.

"But he was a tough teacher, and for years we thought he was... kinda evil. Especially Harry, he was always going on about Death Eater this and Dark Mark that." Neville stopped again, not wanting to see Lily frown too much. "But it turned out he was actually a hero. That he was on our side all along, doing the most dangerous job possible as a spy for Dumbledore against Voldemort."

Neville's voice was quieter and he scooted closer to Lily so she could hear properly. Lily did the same, keeping her eyes locked on Neville as he continued to talk.

"Last year he helped us a lot, I think. It was hell at Hogwarts, and I think Voldemort kind of gave the Carrows permission to do as they please. Snape had to put up an act to show that he was on their side, so for most of the year we thought he was still evil. But we began to realize that he never actually hurt someone in front of us, except for me and Seamus a couple times, but he knew we could take it. And his detentions never had any torture, like those of the Carrows. His was always something tedious and boring like cleaning potions equipment, but it was never torture. He saved me a couple times from the Carrows by saying he was going to administer my punishment himself but always coming up with an excuse not to."

By now Lily's face betrayed the horror she was feeling. She took a step closer to Neville, wanting to do more than just listen as he continued to talk about some of the horrors that had been happening at the school last year. Her hands slid uselessly to Neville's stomach, grabbing at his shirt lightly just so that her fingers could have a distraction. Her eyes wavered from Neville's calm ones to a couple scars on his face and neck, tracing the jagged lines that were almost invisible but that couldn't be healed completely by wizarding potions in such a short amount of time. Her mind spurred as she thought of all the possibilities of how he could have received each scar, making her grimace and frown at the same time.

Neville noticed the grim expression on Lily's face and stopped talking. She was closer to him now and he could clearly see the violets of her eyes again. Her eyes were sad and dark as they attempted to maintain the connection with Neville's eyes. Eventually her lids closed and she shied her face away for a second, quickly turning back as Neville spoke up again.

"Your dad was a good person, Lily. He must have been through a lot and he managed to persevere and save us all on the way. Really, he was a hero." Neville's voice was soft and sincere as he placed a hand comfortingly on Lily's shoulders.

Lily sniffed, and suddenly her vision was blurry. The familiar sensation of hot tears threatened for a second, and the next second they were streaming down her face. Lily slinked her arms around Neville's waist as she stepped forward and embraced him in a desperate hug, burying her face in his broad chest.

Slowly Neville let his arms glide around Lily's shoulders and pulled her into the embrace, bringing her right up against him. He had experience with Ginny and Luna last year, mostly Ginny, so he knew that all he needed to do was keep a firm presence and let Lily cry herself out.

Lily grabbed at Neville fiercely, never having felt quite like this before. The hug was powerful and passionate, and as her tears flowed freely, she let herself melt into his embrace. He was warm and hard and a tower of strength, and her tears soaked into his shirt, absorbed by the infinite well of soft fabric. She clung to his body fervently, letting the warmth seep into hers as the tears slowly subsided.

Lily felt sticky and hot and knew she must have looked an absolute mess as she continued to bury herself into his chest. It felt just right, and as the sun completed its descent into the horizon, Lily couldn't remember a time when she felt as emotional as she did right now. And it was a good thing. For so long she had glided through her life, not allowing herself to get too emotionally attached to any friends or potential love interests; but now it was different. She wanted to sink into Neville and become one with him, to hear that powerful heartbeat and breathe in tune with it, to never lose that feeling of warmth that had sprung up in her stomach.

Lily stepped back a half-step, letting her arms slide from behind Neville and settle on his chest. She looked embarrassed and happy, her eyes glowing orbs of violet in the darkness of the twilight sky. Lily smiled up at Neville and then looked back down, blushing. "Sorry..." she muttered.

Neville grinned as he let his hands slide down Lily's body, settling on either side of her waist, rubbing gentle small circles with both of his thumbs. "You have nothing to apologize for. I have plenty of shirts you know."

Lily laughed softly, a gleeful laugh, embracing Neville's glowing eyes with her own. Her heart beat louder and louder and she shuffled closer, looking up at Neville, arching her neck so she could get as close to his face as possible. It was as if someone else was controlling her as her arms snaked up Neville's chest, looping around his neck to help pull him down to her. It was obvious to her what would come next, and she felt like her heart was going to explode.

Two pairs of eyes were locked in complete unison with each other. Lily leaned forwards, allowing her body to mesh against that of Neville, her breasts to squeeze against his chest, her hips to hover and then press against his hips. Her lips were now inches from Neville's, and as she closed her eyes, she moaned softly, barely a whisper. This was what her body and soul ached for, this unfathomable closeness and desire. She wanted it bad, so very bad. That moment was everything, with the only observer being the light of the moon reflecting off the Great Lake.

Their lips hovered against each other as Neville's arms linked together around Lily's waist, drawing her even closer. Lily pulled herself onto her tippy-toes, and their lips finally came in contact. Lily moaned softly once again, unable to contain herself, and a similar response from Neville pushed her over the brink. She kissed Neville with everything she had, melting into him in every possible way.

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><p><strong>AN: Another chapter down. Hope you enjoyed it. This turned out quite long actually ;) Please leave a review and let me know what you think, both positive and negative. Any and all criticism and praise is welcome! :P**


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